Displaying items by tag: Holcim

Philippines: Holcim Philippines has launched ECOPlanet, a slag cement product. It will promote the cement as a general purpose blend for structural applications. It will be made available in 40kg bags in paper and plastic bags. The Philippines will be among the first markets where ECOPlanet is available. The subsidiary of Switzerland-based Holcim also intends to obtain an Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) for the product in the next few months, as well as launching a plastic bag recycling scheme related to the product.

US: Essroc, part of Italcementi, has acquired the Holcim (US) slag cement grinding plant in Camden, New Jersey, according to MarketLine. As part of the transaction, Essroc will also obtain Holcim's cement terminal in Everett, Massachusetts, US. Upon completion of the transaction, Holcim's staff in Camden and Everett will join Essroc. The transaction is expected to be completed later in 2015. The acquisition will allow Essroc to strengthen its position in the sustainable building products market.

US: Essroc Italcementi Group has signed an agreement with Holcim to purchase its slag cement grinding facility in Camden, New Jeresy. As part of the transaction, Essroc will also obtain Holcim's cement terminal in Everett, Massachusetts. The acquisition will finalise when the pending Holcim and Lafarge merger completes later in 2015.

"The acquisition of the Camden slag grinding facility reiterates Essroc's commitment to the northeast market," said Francesco Carantani, Essroc's president and chief executive officer. "With the focus on sustainability and durability, there is a projected growth in the demand and usage of slag cement."

The Camden facility can produce upwards of 700,000t/yr of slag cement. Essroc currently produces slag cement at its Picton, Ontario, and San Juan, Puerto Rico, cement plants and at its slag grinding facility in Middlebranch, Ohio. With the addition of Camden, Essroc has a combined annual production capacity in excess of 1Mt/yr. Holcim's staff in Camden and Everett will join Essroc once the transaction completes.

US: Lafarge and Holcim have announced further details on the package of assets that they propose to divest in the US as part of their planned merger to create LafargeHolcim. The divestments include:

- Lafarge's 1.1Mt/yr Davenport cement plant in Iowa and seven terminals along the Mississippi River. The units will be sold to Summit Materials for US$450m in cash plus Summit's Bettendorf, Iowa cement terminal;
- Holcim terminals in Michigan and Illinois;
- Holcim Skyway 600,000t/yr slag grinding station in Illinois;
- Holcim Camden 700,000t/yr slag grinding station in New Jersey, along with a terminal in Massachusetts.

The proposed divestments have been negotiated with the staff of the Federal Trade Commission and remain subject to review and approval by the commission. The divestments will be completed subject to acceptance by the commission and to the closing of the merger between Holcim and Lafarge.

France: Holcim will sell its slag grinding plant in Dunkirk as part of divestments required by the European Commission (EC) to approve its merger with Lafarge.

The European Union's antitrust authority has required asset sales by both companies in regions where their activities overlap. The EC's approval is conditional upon the divestment of Lafarge's businesses in Germany, Romania and the UK. Holcim is required to divest its operations in France, Hungary, Slovakia, Spain and the Czech Republic. The proposed transaction concerns assets worth several billion Euros and will create the world's largest cement producer, with operations in 90 countries.

"The Commission had concerns that the transaction, as originally notified, would have had a detrimental effect on competition in a significant number of markets in the European Economic Area (EEA)," said the EC. "The commitments offered by the two companies address these concerns."

According to the EC, its assessment found that the merged entity would have faced insufficient competitive pressure from the remaining players in many markets. This would have brought a risk of price rises. In order to prevent a negative impact on competition, the companies have committed to divesting most of the operations where their activities overlap. Further, the EC said that Holcim and Lafarge will not be allowed to close the deal until it has approved the buyers of the assets put up for sale.